November 4, 2006 - Friday's drive
to Whitby for the OVA 17U Provincial Cup/Tier 1 - which, when
looking at the upcoming schedule, may prove to be one of the shorter
ones - went well for all involved. An earlier snowfall that
covered the top of the Big Apple in Coburg was avoided and we arrived
in good time at our billets in Gormley and Thornhill. Many
thanks to Karin's aunt and Leah's grandparents for housing a large
contingent of players, parents and coaches. Some new members of
the team even learned the pleasure of "Grandma
Fries"!
Saturday morning brought us to the gym - or
so we thought. A couple of cars arrived at the venue that had
hosted so many of our tournaments last year, only to find out that we
were at the wrong school. Some frantic map-reading pointed us in
the right direction and we managed to get to Donald A.Wilson S. S. on
time for warm-up.
Two club teams attending the same
tournament will usually result in double the support for each, but the
first match of the day found our 17U National Capitals facing
off against the 16U CAPS. The 17U girls were a little
apprehensive, remembering the first tournament from the 2005-2006
season that saw us lose to the younger girls. With 6 new members
to the 17U roster, and never having been in competition together, no
one was sure what the outcome would be. The girls came out to a
strong opening, with spirits high, and showed that they indeed knew
how to play as a team. The 16U CAPS bravely defended themselves,
but the set ended in a 25-14 victory for the 17Us. The second
set proved a little more of a challenge as the 16Us had a better sense
of the opposition's strengths and weaknesses. However, after an
initial struggle, the result was a definitive win: 25-17 for the 17U
CAPS.
After a short break for some liquids and
non-salty, non-sugary snacks, the girls made their way back to the gym
to challenge the #8 seed Aurora Storm Hurricanes. The
CAPS came out with strong play and refused to give up the ball.
Their domination at the net resulted in a 25-19 win. A
hard-fought second set, matching point-for-point, with great digging
and some beauty hits on both sides, left us wondering if the match
would go to a third set, but some wonderful blocking put the team on a
roll from point 21 onwards. A nail-biting final rally scored the
winning point for our girls, 25-21.
Following a long break which allowed the
team to refuel and cheer on the 16U's, it was time to confront their
familiar rivals, the #2 seed Scarborough Vipers.
After struggling to get going and a few missed opportunities, the
girls came up with an overall heroic effort, but it was not enough to
save the set (15-25). That set's best features were the
continuing high spirits and comradeship exhibited by the players both
on the court and on the bench. The second set got off to a much
stronger start. More confident play, good serves and blocks, and
mistakes by the opposition led to a set tied at the half. It was
nice to see lots of talking on the floor. Unfortunately, the
result was a 22-25 win for the Vipers. The 17U CAPS had finished in
second place in their pool.
Without a breather, it was on to the first
playoff round against the 4th place team in pool C - the young and
inexperienced Stratford Stingers (#12 seed). The CAPS took a quick and strong
lead and dominated till the end with a final score of 25-6.
This turned out to be the quickest set of the day - only 10 minutes
from start to finish. The play in the second set was a little
shakier, with more scrambling and a few more errors, but the girls
ultimately outplayed the Stingers 25-13. This win meant that the
CAPS had to play immediately in the quarter final round against
DRVC (the
eventual gold medalists).
In spite of some nervousness in the
beginning, the set got off on a roll in what promised to be a much
more high energy match than the previous. Determination was on
the faces of the girls as they showed strength and perseverance,
fighting point-for-point to tie 12-12 before the Orange and White
regained control to take the first set. A more hesitant start to
the second continued the battle which was, once again, neck &
neck, until DRVC gained momentum and finished the set at
19-25.
All of the girls played fabulously and
proved that, even with a much different team than the year before,
they are indeed one of the top teams at Tier 1.
The day was most exhausting for the parents and coaches, as numerous
photos of the day show them sleeping on floors, chairs and
tables.
Congratulations on a 5th place tie to all
the girls, and to coaches Matt and Jess.
Results/OVA 17U Provincial Cup/Tier 1:
1. DRVC (Whitby)
2. Waterloo Tigers Black
3. Scarborough Vipers
4. Durham Attack Black 16U (Oshawa)
5. Aurora Storm Hurricanes
5. National Capitals
(Ottawa)
5. Durham Attack Black (Oshawa)
5. National Capitals 16U (Ottawa)
9. South County Bandits (Essex)
10. Peel Selects '90
11. Stratford Stingers
11. Maverick Black Jacks
(Ottawa)
